cruelty to animals, part 4

just because a sighthound is docile doesn't mean it doesn't have feelings.

this is worse than racing them.

possibly unretouched.
this poor thing is trying to ignore her abuser.
exactly.
i don't even know what this is.

PLEASE don't do this to your animals.

just take them trick or treating with you and your kids. it's your KIDS who enjoy costumes. don't pass your bizarre predelictions onto your kids and your pets.

thank you.

pssst: they're NOT as hyper as people think

THIS is what sighthounds-

-these are greyhounds, but my borzoi/greyhounds and dmitri, my staghound are the same-

-THIS is what they actually--and PREFER to--do.

they're actually quite a bit like bike racers.

by the way, this is called "roaching."

this is an example of double roaching.

photo of the day

share your gravel with friends

as we do from time to time, johnny adamson and i were exchanging emails about rides. they usually consist of me telling him to get his ass down here to ride, and he'll reply that i need to get my ass up there. "my ride's better than your ride" kind of stuff.

well, after tuesday night's wonderful ride [check the g-spot for departure details] i wrote to john after he said "bring on the gravel." i told him all about the wonderful roads, the killer hills that magellan, our navigator claims meet and exceed 9% [and we haven't hit the steep one yet!], and that we all talked about food the last 20 miles. i made a bee-line to aguilara real afterward for chips, salsa and a giant marguerita.

.....

he wrote back:

We do Friday Night Lights - - come on up.

No salsa, but we usually stop for Little Debbie somewhere along the line.

and sent these photos.

full moon gravel--it really doesn't get better than that!

but this looks pretty cool, too, doesn't it?

so here's the deal: send me details and photos about YOUR nighttime gravel rides. i'll post them, and maybe we can get some gravel ride sharing going on. tuesday night, we started with eight riders, and only lost lippold. the week before, we started with about 20 riders, and had about half turn off early. the threat of rain must have frightened most of the regulars away. rumor has it that some, like pete, were indecisive about which bike to ride. HINT: two wheels; fenders optional but nice.

send your photos and text to the reverend at eeastonwest@aol.com

and ride those back roads.

mmm . . .THAT smells like PROFIT!

It looks like excessive war profiteering in Iraq extends far beyond

the usual defense contractor suspects:
Investigators from the Justice Department and the Defense Department are looking into deals that Perdue Farms Inc., Sara Lee Corp., ConAgra Foods Inc. and other U.S. companies made to supply the military, according to people involved in the inquiry. The companies made the deals with the help of former U.S. military procurement officials

they hired as consultants or executives.
The inquiry is focused on whether the food companies set excessively high prices when they sold their goods to the Army's primary food contractor for the war zone, a Kuwaiti firm called Public Warehousing Co. A related question is whether Public Warehousing improperly pocketed for itself refunds it received from these suppliers. Public Warehousing bought vast amounts of meat, vegetables and bakery items from the food companies,

and delivered them to U.S. troops.
How is contracting supposed to work?
In general, many military contracts pay suppliers the cost of the goods they distribute plus a profit margin. In such cases, it is a challenge to ensure that the supplier seeks the lowest price from the maker of the goods.

Unless adequate safeguards are in place, the supplier and the maker have

an incentive to inflate the cost and share the extra profits among themselves.
Federal law prohibits government contractors from obtaining money

through false or fraudulent pretenses.
Within the U.S., the investigation is focused on an Army agency in Virginia known as Army Center for Excellence, Subsistence. It plays a key role in determining the Army's favored suppliers. Mr. Staples, a senior official at the center, works closely with sales agents for a handful of U.S. firms including Sara Lee, ConAgra and Quantum Foods Inc.,

according to emails and people involved in the investigation.
Since 2003, the Army agency has issued guidelines directing that chicken breast, turkey breast, ham and sausage consumed by U.S. forces in Iraq and Kuwait be supplied by Sara Lee.
Would it further not-surprise you that "friendlies" benefit and "non-friendlies" do not?
In one of the most striking examples of the agency's selectivity, Tyson Foods Inc., one of the world's largest chicken producers, has been virtually shut out in the competition to supply the troops for the Iraq conflict. Much of the chicken supplies for Iraq and Kuwait are provided by Perdue and a ConAgra unit called Pilgrim's Pride Inc. That is in line with a recommended menu on a spreadsheet issued by Mr. Staples's agency.

The spreadsheet lists foods and recommended suppliers such as

"turkey thigh roast, raw, netted, 8-10 lb avg" next to "Sara Lee."
In an April 3, 2007, letter to the Pentagon, a lawyer for Tyson complained that

"elements within the military" were providing sole-source contracts

"to certain companies employing former military personnel."
There's a whole lot more you're likely to be unsurprised about, so read the whole thing.
.....
i'm hungry...let's EAT!!

giuliani mum about alien invasion plans

EXETER, N.H. --Presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani on Sunday said

preparedness will be key for all crises,

even an attack from outer space.
During a town hall meeting in Exeter, a young questioner asked

the former New York mayor about his plan to protect Earth.
"If (there's) something living on another planet

and it's bad and it comes over here,

what would you do?" the boy asked.
Giuliani, a nervous grin on his face, said

it was the first time he's been asked about an intergalactic attack.

"Well, what about them?" he asked,

a worried look creeping over his young face.
"Of all the things that can happen in this world,

we'll be prepared for that, yes we will.

We'll be prepared for anything that happens," said Giuliani,

who spent the day campaigning in key early voting state.
Being prepared is a theme that runs through the campaign of Giuliani,

the mayor during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York.
The boy's question risked exposing a major flaw in Giuliani's claim to be

the candidate best prepared to defend america against alien attack.

The question came as Giuliani wrapped up an address

on emergency preparedness.

"This could be the new Steven Spielberg," he nervously ad-libbed,

his lisp more prominent, quickly trying to change subjects.

"You want to be a science fiction writer or a scientist?"
The boy replied he wants to be a sculptor,

"But what about the aliens?" he persisted.
Then a nervous Giuliani scanned the audience for another question:

"Shall we take one question about this planet?"

jason mccartney news

Jason McCartney Signs with Team CSC

American rider Jason McCartney will be joining Team CSC from next season. The 34-year-old rider has signed a two-year contract with the team. McCartney has been with Discovery Channel for the last three seasons and this year he has won a stage in Vuelta a España as well as an overall third place in Amgen Tour of California. ”I've always been drawn to Team CSC's way of doing things and everyone in the peloton is aware that it's an extremely well organized team. I'm very much a team player myself and look forward to becoming a part of Team CSC. It's a very international team and I think I'll fit in well with my future colleagues. As far as my role on the team goes I first of all see myself as being able to help in the stage races and at the same time maybe make some results of my own if the opportunity should come along,” comments Jason McCartney.”Jason's profile fits perfectly with the team. He has a lot of experience as a rider and he'll be a major asset to us in the big stage races. He's already impressed with his results this year and it's no big secret that we've had our eye on him for quite some time now. Apart from being an all-round rider he also has a personality, which would fit in really well with the rest of the team. We consider a number of different factors when recruiting and in Jason's case I think it's safe to say we've made the right decision on all levels,” says Bjarne Riis.